Shares in Salford-based financial adviser and professional services firm Frenkel Topping will be suspended tomorrow ahead of its £65.8m takeover by private equity firm Harwood.
The acquisition will be completed via a court-sanctioned scheme of arrangement which is due to be effective on 8 July.
In a stock market statement, Frenkel Topping confirmed that the scheme record time will be 6pm on 7 July, and that trading in Frenkel Topping shares on AIM will be suspended with effect from 7.30am on 8 July.
The deal was first announced 2 June 2025 and was originally expected to complete in the first half of this year.
The bid from Irwell Financial Services Bidco Ltd, which is managed by Harwood Private Equity, will see shareholders will receive 50p cash and one contingent value right for each scheme share held, or an alternative offer of 10p in cash, plus shares in the newly-created company.
The deal values Frenkel at £65.8m, a 12.9% premium to the 29 September closing price of 45.5p.
The Stock Market statement said the scheme of arrangement will become effective on the delivery of a copy of the court order to the Registrar of Companies, which is expected to occur on 8 July. It said a further announcement will be made once the scheme has become effective.
Frenkel Topping was established in 1979 as a specialist forensic accountant by John Frenkel and Mike Topping. The company was dedicated to servicing lawyers dealing with large personal injury and clinical negligence claims. It floated on AIM in 2004.
It now has a number of businesses including Cardinal Management, which was established in 2015 to provide trauma support and direction. In 2016, Frenkel Topping Group launched its discretionary fund management service, Ascencia, and in 2018 it created wealth manager Obiter.
In recent years it has been busy on the acquisition trail, beginning with Manchester and Leeds-based forensic accountancy firm Forth’s in 2020. In 2021 it acquired civil and commercial litigation costs consultants A&M Bacon and Partners in Costs (PIC), a costs law specialist, both based in Doncaster.